She had no interest in college and once enrolled, never took a course in political science, and had no early interest in politics. A college thesis and following her family’s “Get Up, Get Dressed and Get Going” credo opened a unique career path.
FAMILY BACKGROUND
GC was the youngest of three children, all girls. Her father had been an Army Ranger paratrooper, then a health care system administrator. Her mother had been an educator, then a realtor and finally a state legislator. GC was aware that her parents enjoyed their working careers and their volunteer activities.
CHILDHOOD THOUGHTS OF AN ADULT CAREER
By the time GC was aware of her parents’ jobs outside their home, her father had transitioned from his military career into working as a non-physician administrator within hospital settings, where GC often ‘hung out’ with her dad. She liked the excitement of activities within operating rooms and emergency rooms. ‘Guts and gore’ never bothered GC so, she decided she would be either an OR or an ER nurse when she grew up; or possibly serve as a nurse in Geriatrics because she enjoyed listening to stories told by old folks.
SCHOOL DAYS
During GC’s junior year in high school, she told her parents (both college graduates) that she wasn’t sure she wanted to go to college. Her father, continuing his always calm demeanor, said, jokingly but with a straight face, to GC: “Ok, we (your parents) understand. So, you have three career choices: (1) military, (2) college or (3) the convent.”
It did not take GC long to make her decision among those three options.
COLLEGE – CHANGING PLANS FOR SEVERAL REASONS
At the outset of her freshman year in college, GC declared her ‘major’ to be nursing, for which the required courses then included anatomy and physiology. (Looking back after several decades post college, GC now realizes that at the time of her college years, there was an oversupply of nurses, so the college had apparently decided to weed out some of the candidates early on, hoping to steer many of their students into other career paths.)
Facing the prospect of a second semester involving increasingly difficult science courses, GC decided to change her career focus from nursing but stay within the general field of health care. For reasons GC cannot now recall, she told her college advisor that she would now like to be a speech pathologist, so her second semester courses were arranged accordingly.
Toward the end of her freshman year, GC was sexually assaulted. She reported the incident to the college administration and at the same time decided she did not feel safe at this college and arranged to transfer to a small, liberal arts college in another state which – not coincidentally – both her older sisters and other extended family members had attended and enjoyed their college experiences.
NEW COLLEGE – NEW OPPORTUNITIES
Most important following the negative experiences at her first college, GC’s innate positive approach to life in general plus following the example of her parents, who always seemed to be able to “Get Up, Get Dressed and Get Going” through all their home relocations during her father’s continuing job promotions, enabled GC to maintain her optimism and enthusiasm as she proceeded within her new school setting, along her newly selected education path – a major in ‘Sociology’ – a general field covering a wide range of careers helpful to others.
GC’s new college had an alternative requirement for graduation: (A) pass a series of comprehensive examinations (“comps”) or (B) write a “thesis” (a long essay involving personal research to support a statement or theory that is put forth as a premise to be maintained or proved) on an approved subject. Rather than risking the chance to graduate by having to pass exams, especially in contrast to having the opportunity to research and write a paper about a topic which she would find interesting, GC opted to prepare a thesis on a topic within health care, in which she had long been interested: Geriatrics, specifically nursing home abuse of elderly patients.
FIRST ADULT JOB VIA “LUCK” = RELEVANT EXPERIENCE MEETS OPPORTUNITY
When GC graduated from college, she had no job lined up and was still pondering what she would like to do for an adult career. So, GC now realizes it was ‘luck’ that her mother was – at the same time – introduced to a random person, to whom GC’s mother asked: “Do you have any suggestions for how a recent college graduate might find a job when she majored in sociology and wrote a thesis on abuse in nursing homes?” By coincidence, the random person was the Chief of Staff for a U.S. Senator who was Chairman of the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Aging. He responded: “Your daughter’s thesis might be interesting to my boss, so have her send it to my D.C. office.”
Fast forward: The Senator was indeed interested in GC’s research on the prevalence of nursing home abuse of senior citizen patients. GC was invited to meet with the Senator and his Chief of Staff to discuss her thesis, which turned out to be an informal job interview. GC received an offer to join the Senator’s staff as an Assistant on the Committee on Aging.
(Editor’s note – Recall the definition of “Luck” within this collection of career stories: “Experience meets opportunity.” GC’s experience with having researched a topic of interest to her, by coincidence, matched the opportunity for a government official to hire her to add to his base of knowledge, especially when her optimistic, self-described Type A, willing-to-work-hard personality was evident during her interview.)
CONGRESSIONAL STAFFER – POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES
Positives – GC was fortunate that her Senator’s staff position – instead of merely answering phones at a reception desk – included providing her views on aging seniors issues while working closely with the Senator’s lead health policy advisor. Her salary was minimal but no one starting out on ‘Capitol Hill’ (aka “The Hill”) earns a ‘comfortable’ living.
Despite the low salary, the experience and the professional network achieved, far outweigh any negatives.
Negatives – GC notes that when she started, there were no strict ethics laws, as there are now, governing the type of gifts which those who are in the business of trying to influence legislation (commonly referred to as “lobbyists”) could provide to the legislators. Thus, junior staffers such as GC at the time, would look forward to attending ‘receptions’ hosted by various businesses and trade associations, where legislators were invited, which provided a lavish spread of high-class food and beverages which the underpaid staffers eagerly consumed as free dinners.
Another negative which GC avoided was being assigned to uninteresting job duties. (GC recommends to anyone caught in such a situation be persistent in seeking to expand your role by showing your eagerness to learn all aspects of your employers’ areas of interest plus volunteer to take on additional responsibilities. Someone will eventually notice your dedication and enthusiasm and match it wilth an appropriate opportunity.) (Editor’s note – GC’s advice applies to any uninteresting career situation where you see possibilities for greater career interest and personal growth, if given the opportunity.)
CAREER CHALLENGE – CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND YOUR CONTROL MAY PUT YOUR JOB AT RISK
While GC’s work as a Congressional staff assistant was both interesting and useful plus she sensed it was appreciated by those in senior staff positions, an unpredictable circumstance presented a sudden career challenge: the Senator (herein referred to a Senator 1 or S-1, for reasons which will soon be apparent within this story) announced, in the middle of his re-election campaign for which he was the overwhelming favorite to win, that he was withdrawing his candidacy. (While S-1 did not provide a reason at the time, it soon became apparent that S-1 was waiting to be appointed to the President’s Cabinet.)
Like all other Senators and Representatives (together they are Members of Congress) S-1’s staff had neither an employment contract nor an informal understanding that they would follow S-1 to his new position and be hired as his staff there. So, staffers could either (A) immediately scramble to line up employment elsewhere or (B) wait to see if the Senator’s replacement might offer to retain their services as experienced staffers who could ease the transition of the new Senator into his or her job.
In another “lucky” (?) circumstance, S-2 had once served on the staff of S-1 so the new Senator knew the importance of having experienced, hard-working staff immediately available to assist the legislator to carry out their complex, daily duties.
GC had apparently created her own good fortune by working hard to become a valuable member of S-1’s staff. Accordingly, GC was one of a limited number of staffers who were requested to stay onboard when the new Senator (S-2) was sworn in.
CAREER CHANGE – BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR
GC remained employed in her staff position with S-2 for several years but while vacationing at her parents’ home many states removed from Capitol Hill and experiencing no constant work pressures, she decided to slow her work pace by opting for a career outside of DC while remaining on a path for which she had experience: health care. Combining her relevant experience in a fast-paced setting dealing with health care system issues, GC soon found employment in a hospital administrative position.
In contrast to GC’s last position as S-2’s Executive Assistant for Scheduling, where GC’s phone never stopped ringing and the calendar of events was constantly changing, GC’s phone and computer within her new hospital office, rarely had any in-coming communications. Initially and amusingly, GC thought her new hospital equipment must be broken! But no, the pace was just much slower. However, the slow pace was too much of a difference for GC’s innate energy; she missed the daily, fast-paced action.
DON’T BE AFRAID TO CHANGE YOUR CHANGE!
Having decided that she missed the helter-skelter of the political world, GC returned to the political world to work on the campaign of a candidate for Governor of the state where she was now living. Despite her best efforts to coordinate the campaign within her assigned district, the candidate lost the state-wide, general election. So, now what?
Working hard for others within the political world is often noticed and remembered. Thus, GC’s name was recalled by the Chief of Staff for the current Senator (S-3) who was head of the Congressional delegation (the most senior Congressional member for each state). (Editor’s note – a staffer need not be a resident of the same state as the legislator / employer, but it would be unusual to not share the same state residency due to knowledge of common interests.) GC was offered a staff position as S-3’s “Scheduler” – whose duties, despite the same job title, vary from Senator to Senator. Fortunately for GC, S-3 liked to avoid surprises of events and people she possibly should have remembered, so S-3 kept GC at her side throughout the day, thus introducing GC to other legislators and their staffs, an experience which would turn out to be invaluable for GC’s next career, which GC had not yet envisioned or planned.
Another job benefit which GC had earned by virtue of her prior experience: GC had the relevant background in issues with which some Congressional committees were interested so S-3 was willing to listen to GC’s perspectives, which was an opportunity not widely available to most Congressional staffers.
TYPICAL DAILY ACTIVITIES OF A SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL STAFFER
A typical day’s activities of a senior staffer would involve some of the following (obviously not all on the same day):
* Prepare a “briefing book” (outlining issues for upcoming events) for use by your legislator (your employer)
* Attend and take notes at committee meetings / hearings which conflicted with your legislator’s schedule
* Greet visitors on behalf of your legislator (assure everyone that their comments will be promptly and fully conveyed to your legislator!)
* Coordinate your activities with your co-worker staffers
* Meet with staffers for other legislators to assist coordination between two or more legislators
* Prepare – often revising per unexpected developments – your legislator’s travel schedule
* Update your legislator’s government business calendar
* Prepare “talking points” for your legislator’s use
* Work on your legislator’s political campaign BUT ONLY if you are 1 of the maximum 2 staffers permitted by law to work on the campaign
* Maintain confidentiality of all information regarding your legislator and the activities of the staff; “Be the assistant, not the story!”
ADVICE TO ASPIRING CONGRESSIONAL STAFFERS
Regardless of whether you have studied political science courses, volunteer as an intern with a local politician or within the office of a D.C. based politician. In this way, you will gain first-hand experience in:
* The long hours required of a staffer
* Zero or minimal pay earned by entry level political staffers
* Discussions of election strategies
* Discussions in the art of political compromise, some of which you may or may not personally agree with but will have to learn to live with to loyally serve your employer; if your conscience does not permit, find another job! (Editor’s note – If you learn of clearly illegal, significant activity – speeding tickets don’t qualify; bribery or Watergate style espionage does – consider becoming a “Whistleblower”)
GC continues – If you “pay your dues”, it can really pay off through:
* Helping (within a group context) to push your personal political beliefs forward to fruition
* Building a network of friends with whom you might interact (helping each other) during your future career in or out of the political world
CAREER SUCCESS MAY LEAD TO AN UNSOLICITED OFFER
Overview of the many career paths forward for Congressional staffers, including:
* Remain with your legislator’s staff as long as possible – some legislators continue to win their elections and serve well into old age (Editor’s note – no comment on whether serving into old age is a great idea for their constituents)
* Switch to essentially the same job with a different legislator
* Seek elected political office for yourself (as did S-2 in the story above)
* Join the “Government Affairs” department of a major business (for profit corporation or a non-profit advocacy group or trade association – e.g., for environmental protection) – to serve as an in-house lobbyist focusing on trying to influence legislation affecting that single employer
* Join a lobbyist business which represents many clients (referred to as a ‘contract lobbyist’; typically, a lobbyist business is either affiliated with one of the major political parties or is unaffiliated / independent politically; (transferring from working on “The Hill” to a government lobbying firm is called “Going down-town to K Street” which is the business home of many lobbyists).
GC’s next career path:
As noted already within GC’s personal working career, her experience and dedication to working hard and learning had been noticed, leading to job promotions. Consistent with that pattern, GC received an unsolicited offer to “Go downtown.” She considered the opportunity to use her experience on “The Hill” in a different setting, earning better pay and opted for the career change.
(Editor’s note – Outside “The Beltway” – a term describing all the different government activities within the District of Columbia, aka Washington, D.C., the term “Lobbyist” often has a negative perception among the public due to a scandal involving a D.C. based lobbyist, Jack Abramoff, who was eventually convicted in the early 2000s, along with 21 others who pled or were found guilty, including White House officials, a U.S. Congressman and nine other lobbyists and congressional aides, for their participation in various bribery schemes to affect Federal legislation. Abramoff served 5 years in prison for his crimes. As a result, Congress passed strict ethics laws clarifying and restricting “gifts” to legislators, their staff, businesses, and families.)
GC, who prefers to describe her career as a “Government Consultant” is glad – along with her entire lobbyist firm – to understand and fully abide by the ethics laws, hoping that all those in the lawful and useful business of trying to influence legislation, are now playing by the same rules and able to succeed only by presenting persuasive ideas instead of cash. GC can only wonder about compliance by others.
TYPICAL DAILY ACTIVITIES OF A LOBBYIST
You’ve read this before but as a reminder, not all the typical daily activities of a lobbyist can possibly occur on the same day:
* Meet (individually or as part of a team) with your client to understand their business, their goals and how your business could assist their needs
* Develop a plan to assist your client, for lawful ways to influence legislation (i.e., essentially developing persuasive “talking points” since now even small “gifts” such as sports event tickets and bottles of wine are prohibited)
* Identify a (potential) “champion” legislator whose interests and/or experience would likely motivate them to push new legislation which – not coincidentally – would be in the best interests of your clients’ business needs
* Meet with Congressional legislators in person or with their staff, to discuss the real-world effect of pending legislation and suggest revisions to accommodate your client’s needs OR to propose new legislation in the interests of your client
* Suggesting to a legislator or staffer that a Congressional hearing should be held regarding a certain topic and volunteering to supply a relevant witness (e.g., a client representative)
* Observe (in person or via broadcasts) Congressional hearings on pending legislation of potential relevance to your client(s)
* Prepare periodic reports – required by law – disclosing the financial value of any objects or services provided and the source of the related financial funding (e.g., contributions to political campaigns)
CAREER CHALLENGE – REBOUNDING AFTER LOSING A JOB THROUGH NO FAULT OF YOUR OWN
(Editor’s note – The longer one lives, the more one is exposed to random events, some good, some not so good. Examples: (1) A random person can be asked by a parent for career advice and wind up hiring the child, leading to a successful career. (2) Your employer can resign from your business leadership, leaving you to wonder if you still have a job and what are your options. (3) You can be healthy one day and diagnosed with leukemia the next day.)
GC worked hard, shifting from one lobbyist firm to another for better (hoped for) opportunities (e.g., bigger clients with more needs) and/or better pay. She experienced appreciation for her hard work but on one unexpected occasion, her employer lost enough business to cause it to lay-off (terminate) several employees, including GC, who, distraught over being fired with no job lined up, called, in tears, her family for advice. Their response: “Take today to regroup; you can sit and cry on your sofa the rest of today but tomorrow, get up, get dressed and get going on using your network of friends to help you find a new job!”
GC quickly put aside her negative emotions, suppressed any further tears, and immediately called some friends from her professional network to ask about any known job openings with reputable lobbying firms. Fortunately, she found an excellent match, to which business GC brought her creative, prescient (showing knowledge of events before they take place) idea to assist clients and thus expand the business of her lobbyist employer: focus on business’s emerging cyber-security needs, about which GC had learned through her work with a former Senator (S-3).
CAREER CHALLENGE – SERIOUS HEALTH ISSUE
GC had not been feeling her usual self but kept charging ahead with her work anyway. Eventually she had to seek medical advice, which led to a serious diagnosis: leukemia (a type of blood cancer which usually begins within the bone marrow). Several old and new chemotherapy treatments were attempted, none successful. The next step was a bone marrow transplant to see if and when a compatible donor could be located, who fortunately was soon identified. This is a serious medical procedure, requiring lengthy isolation while the patient’s immune system recovers, including doctor-recommended avoidance of potentially stressful work.
At the time of her diagnosis, GC had been working hard for the same lobbyist firm for over 8 years, focusing mostly on the cyber-security issues she had introduced to her firm plus still some attention to health care issues from her earliest government experiences. So, while GC’s employer’s patience and understanding of GC’s extended work absences and then starts and stops of part-time efforts were amazing and greatly appreciated, GC had certainly earned such consideration by having brought new and expanded business earnings to her firm.
As this real-life story is being prepared, GC has returned to her full-time career duties, more quickly than her medical team had expected, or thought they had advised against. When asked by her oncologist why GC had been working full-time, she characteristically replied: “Well, you didn’t say I couldn’t!” Such an attitude reflects the family credo which GC has proudly and innately adopted: Get up, get dressed and get going!
